Chapter 331 - 290: Executing the Fear Knight

When Fedor, leader of the Red Flame Sons, arrived at the warzone of this momentous battle with his three Personal Guards.

Reinhardt’s Vengeful Angel form, blazing like the Divine Emperor’s Fury Flame, was reflected in his pupils. The sheer visual impact shocked him to the core, rooting him to the spot.

The three Personal Guards behind him were also overcome with immense shock.

But when they saw the Fear Knight sprawled on the ground, the scales on his chest completely shattered, looking utterly wretched—and recognized him as the former champion of the Red Flame Sons Battle Group, Du Ma·the Red Flame Disaster—their shock turned to seismic disbelief.

To wash away the great shame the Battle Group had suffered.

All six Battle Group Leaders of the Red Flame Sons had hunted for Du Ma, each attempting to personally exact their revenge.

But without exception, every attempt had ended in a humiliating death.

The so-called "Battle Group champion" was, in other words, the most powerful Imperial Knight in the entire Battle Group. Not all Battle Group Leaders were the strongest fighters in their own units, unlike someone like Sedon, who was not only his Battle Group’s most capable combatant but also a master of politics, intelligence, and economics.

Furthermore, Du Ma had once earned the highest honor of the Dragon Hunters, the title of one of the Ten Dragon Guard, just like Heinrich. This alone was a testament to how immensely powerful he had been a thousand years ago.

If not for the fact that Du Ma had already faced that Imperial powerhouse who ascended to the Sky Military Rank...

The very man whom Reinhardt, despite calling him a complete bastard, still secretly admired.

In this battle.

Reinhardt would have died.

The Radiant Angels would have died.

The Vengeful Angels and the Ash Guard would have died too.

Even the Red Flame Sons who had fallen into the Demon Void Realm would not have escaped.

Flayer Du Ma was already gravely wounded. All of his Extraordinary Creations had been destroyed during his battle with Sedon, leaving only the Steel Execution Rack intact.

Yet, even then, he had casually suppressed Reinhardt with a single hand, holding his life firmly in his grasp.

Too bad this world doesn’t deal in "what ifs" or sell remedies for regret.

The Fear Knight, Flayer Du Ma—its power was immense, but the enemy it faced was Reinhardt.

Another Imperial powerhouse forged in mountains of corpses, seas of blood, and high-pressure battles.

Du Ma was bound to pay a heavy price for its arrogance and cruelty.

Or perhaps, it should have felt honored to die at the hands of another of the Administrative Region’s Imperial powerhouses.

Flayer Du Ma fell to the ground like a wounded beast, an inhuman growl rumbling in its throat. But Reinhardt’s seemingly simple and unadorned Body Techniques assault had shattered more than just its scales.

The shockwave that pierced its organs had nearly broken all of its ribs, and its heart and lungs were severely damaged.

It lay prone on the ground, its face a mask of utter ferocity as it stared at Reinhardt. Seemingly unable to accept that it had lost to a mere ant, it pleaded inwardly to the Slaughter Death Arena, begging its master to once again bestow upon it a blessing of Mighty Power to help it defeat the formidable enemy before it.

"O, supreme Avernus, my master, please send down Your mighty power of slaughter..."

But...

It seemed to have forgotten that the object of its loyalty was merely one of Avernus’s many Void Divine Artifacts: the Slaughter Death Arena.

It is at times like these that a Demon’s true face is revealed.

The Demon Void Realm knows only the naked truth.

The Slaughter Death Arena does not keep failures.

The moment it failed, it was destined to be mercilessly abandoned.

This scene was a biting irony when compared to the desperate situation Reinhardt had faced on Grillers World.

Even if you are a failure, a completely useless Mortal, in the Emperor’s eyes, you are still His kin and His people, a sun of civilization that illuminates the Human World.

At this moment.

Not only could Reinhardt feel Flayer Du Ma’s power rapidly fading through his Knight Perception, but even the Imperial Knights on the periphery of the warzone noticed it too.

The blessing of the Slaughter Death Arena was being stripped, bit by bit, from the traitor’s body and soul.

And the other host for this power was, shockingly, none other than Reinhardt, who stood before Du Ma.

At this moment.

Reinhardt heard a low voice whispering in his ear.

Even the Demon Void Realm within his perception became distorted and illusory, and scenes from his past flashed through his memory.

The annihilation of the Steel Knight Order.

The conspiracy woven by Sedon and the Imperial Regency Council that had shrouded the sky.

His most revered Knight Tutor and training camp instructor, Knight An Jie, stood alone before Dortmund, only to be torn into a bloody pulp before his very eyes.

Back then, he was like an ant tossed into a raging sea, struggling desperately, struggling endlessly...

In these illusions.

Reinhardt saw what would happen if he obtained this power: he would slay his enemies and stand upon their corpses. He would reach the pinnacle of the world, fulfilling the knightly ideal he had sworn to on that night the skies of Grillers burned.

A throne built from mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Power, wealth... countless Mortals and Imperial nobles prostrating themselves at his feet.

The voice told him that if he just opened his heart, he could obtain Extraordinary Power ten, even a hundred times greater than what he possessed now. If he just nodded his head in agreement, with no price to pay, he could stand at the very peak of power in the Imperial Administrative Region.

He could purge the rebels, kill Great Lord Kles, and restore the entire Ash Soil Star Zone.

’...Accept this power. It will help you achieve everything you desire...’

As Reinhardt was lost in the illusions of the Slaughter Death Arena, Fedor, the leader of the Red Flame Sons, finally arrived with his men at the epicenter of the battle. He glanced at Du Ma, who lay on the ground, his body like a deflated balloon.